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How to Write a Powerful HR Resume?

By | Barbara Fielder

As an HR professional, there’s a good chance you have been involved in recruiting numerous people. The recruitment process requires you to determine from an individual’s resume, among other factors, how good a person will be for a specific position. Being the one making this call is not always an easy thing to do, and it can be even more challenging when you’re the one looking for a job. Therefore, it’s important when drafting your resume to objectively assess your qualifications and determine what would make you a good fit for your future employer. While there isn’t any cheat code for writing a resume, there are some things you might want to consider. In this article, we will be going over 7 of them. So, sit back, grab a pen, and prepare to take some notes. 

Writing a Strong HR Resume: 7 Expert Tips

Whether you are simply updating your resume or you’re actively looking for a new job, you might want to consider the following 7 tips to get the best results:

  • Captivate attention with a nice headline
  • Go in-depth when describing your previous employment
  • Give numbers when stating your achievements
  • Include HR-related keywords throughout your resume
  • Make your resume ATS friendly
  • Highlight your strengths
  • Review with friends

1. Captivate attention with a nice headline

The headline is the first thing most recruiters will look at when opening a resume. An ideal headline should be brief and accurately describe your profession. So, let’s say you are currently a Senior HR manager in an Oil and Gas company with SCRUM master experience. Your main headline should be Senior HR Manager.  With that out of the way, you can include one or two subheadings that further describe your profession. So, continuing with our earlier example, subheading one can show you have SCRUM master experience, while subheading two can show your Oil and Gas industry experience. One pro tip to consider when writing headlines is that it should not just be about what you have done but also your intended future role.

2. Go in-depth when describing your previous employment

When listing out your previous job, provide enough information to help potential employers understand where you are coming from. For example, your resume can include the number of employees, yearly growth, location, and other related facts about each company. You can also complement this with one or two lines that describe your previous employer. So back to our example of a Senior HR Manager at an Oil and Gas company ”ABC Oil, with 500 employees, is based in Alaska, USA. Annual revenue of $1 Billion. Responsible for producing and distributing 2% of gas in the USA.”

3. Give numbers when stating your achievements

One of the ways to impress any recruiter is to show them your achievements. However, they should be quantifiable. So, instead of saying, “I was responsible for recruiting the majority of our staff from 2013 to 2020,” you could instead use this, “I was responsible for recruiting 300 staff members across all departments over my 7 years as Senior Manager at ABC Oil. Our employee turnover rate was always below 2%.” While both sentences might appear the same to you as the Senior HR manager, the second sentence would likely carry more weight in the mind of the recruiters.

4. Include HR-related keywords throughout your resume

The sad reality of recruitment is that many outstanding applications are often skipped because the resumes don’t include the right keywords. Because of the number of applications and the limited time to review and select a good candidate, some recruiters might skim through your resume and put it aside. To avoid this, you want to include all the HR keywords related to the job you’re applying for. One of the easiest ways to do this is to go through the job requirements and identify what they are looking for in an ideal candidate. With that information, you will be able to include the right keywords on your resume and improve your chances of getting an interview.

5. Make your resume ATS friendly

ATS stands for Applicant Tracking Systems, and as an HR professional, you might already know that it’s used to filter through applicants’ resumes depending on the chosen keywords. While there is no way to pass through every ATS system, as an HR professional, you’re more likely than most to know how the system works and the best way to format your resume. Use that information to your advantage when applying for jobs.

6. Highlight your strengths

Some candidates might have experience working in the same sector or company. So it’s essential to differentiate yourself from the crowd by highlighting what makes you unique. For example, do you have some special certification or leadership experience? You should include it on your resume briefly, clearly, and concisely.

7. Review with friends

Lastly, after working on your resume, you should consult your friends for their opinion. Since you probably know your resume and experiences very well, you might not be able to notice if you have left something out or if the delivery could be better. You can also seek professional help by reading Trusted Essay Reviews to find the best online writers at various price points. When seeking feedback, always be open to negative ones as well, as it would improve your chances of getting a solid resume.

Source: https://unsplash.com/photos/Imc-IoZDMXc

Bottom Line

While the mentioned points will improve your resume, they are just guidelines that may suit your needs. The recruitment world is evolving, so stay up-to-date. Hopefully, you enjoyed reading the points laid out, and if so, please consider implementing them to get a perfect resume.


Author Bio:

Barbara Fielder is a recruiter with years of experience interviewing candidates across different industries. Her job is to think objectively, without bias, to always get the best person for the role. When she isn’t working, you will find that Barbara is an exceptional Pianist and lover of anime.

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